Combined shredding, compacting and incinerating apparatus

ABSTRACT

An assembly of a shredder, compactor and incinerator for receiving loose material, i.e. paper and the like, shredding it into small pieces, then compacting accumulated pieces into a bale-like form for delivery to an incinerator. A compacting wall moves against shredded material in an enlarged space and forces it toward an outer wall which defines, with the compacting wall and side walls, a bale-like form whereupon a ram moves the compacted material through an opening in an incinerator. The incinerator includes an inlet fire door which upon closure thereof wipes the material clean from the face of the ram. The system includes automatic means for closing an inlet to the compacting device, compacting the material, ejecting the material into the incinerator, and operating the door for the inlet into the incinerator.

United States Patent [191 Panning 11] 3,815,521 1 June'll, 1974 1 1 COMBINED SHREDDING, COMPACTING AND INCINERATING APPARATUS [75] Inventor: Martin H. Panning, Thiensville,

Wis.

[73] Assignee: Blower Application Company,

Milwaukee, Wis.

22 Filed: July7,1972' 211 App]. No.: 269,610

Related US. Application Data [62] Division of Ser. No. 80,058, Oct. 12, 1970, Pat. No.

110/8 A, 18; 100/43, 45, 49, 52, 53, 93, 97, 177, 178, 215, 218, 233, 240, 256, 272; 241/46 A, 109, 46.02, 22, 101 A, 112, 186 R, 257 G, 270, 3, 27

[56] References Cited UNlTED STATES PATENTS 2,446,772 8/1948 Laughlin 24l/46.2 3,064,593 1l/l962 Burk et a1.

Flowers, Jr 110/8 R Kramer 110/8 R Primary Examiner-Kenneth W. Sprague Assistant Examiner-Henry C. Yuen Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Mann, Brown, McWilliams & Bradway [571 ABSTRACT An assembly of a shredder, compactor and incinerator for receiving loose material, i.e. paper and the like, shredding it into small pieces, then compacting accumulated pieces into a bale-like form for delivery to an incinerator. A compacting wall moves against shredded material in an enlarged space and forces it toward an outer wall which defines, with the compacting wall and side walls, a.bale-like form whereupon a ram movesthe compacted material'through an opening in an incinerator. The incinerator includes an inlet fire door which upon closure'thereof wipes the material clean from the face of the ram. The system includes automatic means for closing an inlet to the compacting device, compacting the material, ejecting the material into the incinerator, and operating the door for the inlet into the incinerator.

6 Claims, 6 Drawing Figures 3,357,380 12/1967 Siracusa 3,513,768 5/1970 Altman ct all...

3,556,025 1/1971 Holley ..ll()/8R PATENTEBJUN I 1 1914 3.815521 sum 2 0F 5 COMBINED SHREDDING, COMPAC'IING AND INCINERATING APPARATUS This application is a division of my copending application Ser. No. 80,058,-filed Oct. I2, 1970, now US. Pat. No. 3,685,437, dated Aug. 22, 1972.

The present invention is directed to new and useful improvements in apparatus for converting paper, cardboard and other materials into a shredded form, for compacting the shredded material. and for delivering the material to an incinerator.

Many modern incinerators are arranged for a primary combustion of materialfollowed by secondary combustion of the effluent gases. The amount of air as well as the amount of combustible material must be carefully controlled. With this in mind, the primary purpose of the present invention is to arrange a shredder, compactor and incinerator in such a manner that shredded material is compressed to such an extent that relatively little air remains within the material, while the amount of air which enters the incinerator with a compressed mass of material is held to a relatively low amount.

Other purposes of the present invention are to form an assembly of a shredder, compactor, and incinerator in such a way that the compactor delivers shredded material in compact form through an opening in an upper portion of an incinerator while at the same time effectively utilizing the space below the level of the incinerator opening for compacting purposes, to arrange an assembly of this type in such a way that a comparatively large volume of shredded material is compacted for each compacting stroke of the compactor, to arrange an assembly of this type in such a way that fire hazards within a compacting device positioned next to an incinerator are minimized, and to arrange an assembly of this type in a manner such that the assembly functions automatically to stop the shredding operation, start the compacting operation, and eject compacted material into an incinerator when shredded material has accumulated to a preselected extent within the compacting apparatus. These and other purposes will appear from time to time inthe course of the ensuing specification and claims when taken with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic view of the assembly incorporating the principles of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged detail illustration of a portion of the assembly illustrated in FIG. '1 and particularly illustrating the compacting structure shown in FIG. I;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken in the direction of the arrows 33 in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a plan view of the compacting structure illustrated in FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of the assembly as shown in FIG. 2 but illustrating different operative positions of certain elements; and

FIG. 6 is a diagrammatic view illustrating automatic operation of the assembly.

Like elements are designated by like characters throughout the specification and drawings.

With particular reference now to the drawings and in the first instance to FIG. 1, the number 10 generally designates a shredder which is mounted on top of supporting standards and framework 11 and I2. The numeral 13 generally designates a compaction apparatus which is positioned below a discharge opening 10a from the bottom of shredder l0. Positioned alongside the compacting device 13 is an incinerator generally designated'at 14. A belt conveyor generally designated at 15 is adapted to receive material such as paper, cardboard or other material to be shredded and deliver it through the inlet opening to the shredder whereupon shredding knives, generally designated by the three'circles 16, operate to tear, cut and otherwise comminute the material into small pieces.

Shredder 10 and conveyor 15 may take any one of several known forms. One suitable type of shredder is that found in US. Pat. No. 2,894,697 to Panning and Curry. a

Incinerator 14 may also take any one of several known forms. The incinerator is illustrated as having a cylindrical form. Other shapes and forms may be used in the invention. The important thing is that the incinerator have an inlet opening, generally designated at 16a, which is formed through an upper portion of the wall of the incinerator so that material may befed to the incinerator considerably above anylevel of ash or burning material within the incinerator. The inlet opening 16a to the incinerator is adapted to be selectively opened and closed by a vertically movable fire door 17. The door reciprocates in guides around the inlet opening and suitable seals (not shown) may be employed to make the door substantially airtight (when closed). A duct 18 is formed with a cross-section matching the cross-section of the inlet opening to the incinerator. This duct is. connected to an outlet 19 formed in the compactor. The outlet 19, connecting duct 18 and inlet 16a are thus horizontally aligned, and have matching cross-sectional internal shapes and areas. They are formed so that a ram 20 in compactor 13 may move toward the inlet 16a in the direction of the arrow illustrated in FIG. 1 and eject material from the compactor 13 through the duct 18 and into the incinerator.

The compacting structure is defined bya lower curvilinear wall 20 which is upwardly concave and which is formed about an axis 21 which is generally horizontally aligned with the lower wall of the duct 18 and vertically aligned with one wall around the discharge opening from the shredder, as, for example, the wall of opening 10a, which is most remote from the incinerator. Axis 21 extends at right angles to the passage through the duct 18 and transversely to thedirection of movement of the ejecting ram 20. Spaced and generally parallel sidewalls 22 and 23 are joined to bottom wall 20 and the structure thus defined is supported from the standards 11 by means of support brackets 24 and 25. A compacting wall 21a is mounted for movement about axis 21 by suspension on a hinge bar 21b. Wall 21a extends between side walls 22 and 23 and bottom wall 20. A slight clearance exists between movable wall 12a and the bottom and side walls.

Suitable angle irons 26 may be welded to the side walls so as to reinforce the same. Suitable angles 27 may also be welded to the exterior-of the bottom wall 20 and extend parallel to the axis 21 for purposes of reinforcement. An inspection door 28 may, if desired, be formed through one of the side walls. Channels 29 may be welded to the side walls for reinforcing the structure, for receiving hinge bar 21b, and for also supporting the structure on the brackets 24 and 25.

Wall 21a may be made of metal plate with reinforcing angle irons on the back side thereof. It extends as a radius from axis 21 and is movable between a re- 3 tracted position extending downwardly and inclined away from the incinerator and a discharge position horizontally aligned with the lower wall'of duct 18.

The side walls 22 extend above the channels 29 (and above axis 21) to a level generally aligned with the upper wall of the connecting duct 18. A connecting fitting 30 is positioned on top of the'side walls (FIGS. 2 and 3). This connecting duct has an opening therethrough generally matching the discharge opening from the shredder 10. Opposite side walls 31 and 32 of this fitting are generally vertically aligned with the side walls 22 and 23, while the side walls 33 and 34of this fitting are positioned so that one wall 33 is generally vertically aligned with the axis 21 while the other is positioned to one side of this axis and toward the incinerator. The lower portion of wall 34 may be formed of flexible material as at 34a. An outer or top wall 35 spans the upper portions of the side walls 22 and 23 between the wall 34 and the connecting duct 18.

A closure 36, in the form of a plate, is mounted for horizontal sliding movement in guide rails 37 and 38 which are fixed to the upper portions of the side walls 22 and 23, and is movable from a retracted position illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3 to a position spanning the opening through the connecting fitting 30, so as to close the inlet opening to the housing. Closure 36 is adapted to be reciprocated by a ram 37 which is carried by a bracket 38 on a cross frame member 39 spanning standards 11. Ram 37 has its piston connected to the closure as at 40. Position sensing switches 41 and 42 are adapted to be actuated when the ram and door are at the retracted and extended positions, respectively. For example, switch 42 may be actuated when the ram is fully extended,,as when closure 36 closes the inlet opening, whereas switch 41 is' actuated when the ram is at the fully retracted position as when the inlet opening is completely open.

Closure 36 abuts and wipes against the flexible portion 340 in the extended position of the closure.

Fire door 16 is adapted to be vertically reciprocated through use of a pair of chains 43 which are trained around upper pulleys 44. Pulleys 44 are rotatably mounted on a bracket 45 which is in turn carried by the housing of shredder 10. These chains are reversed around the upper pulleys 44 and then taken about pulleys 46 which are carried by the piston ram 47. Ram 47 is shown in the retracted position. Upward and downward extension of the piston rod or ram 47 causes the pulleys 46 to move downwardly and thus pull fire door 16 upwardly. Position sensing switches 48 and 49 are adapted to be actuated when ram 47 is in the retracted and extended positions, respectively. When ram 47 moves pulley 46 downwardly to a level generally aligned with the switch 49 so as to actuate the same, the door '16 is in an elevated position fully away from the inlet opening to the incinerator. When ram 47 moves upwardly sufficiently to close fire door 16, switch 48 is actuated.

The ejecting ram is mounted for reciprocating movement along a generally horizontal path toward the incinerator inlet opening by means of guide rails 50 which are fixed to the upper portion of the side walls of-the housing.

The ejecting block or ram 20 is adapted to be reciprocated between a retracted position, illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, and an extended position designated at 20' in FIG. 1 wherein thematerial contacting face of the block 20 is generally vertically aligned with the outer wall surface of the door 16. Ejecting ram 20 is adapted to be reciprocated by a hydraulic ram 51 which is carried by supporting framework between standards 11. The piston of ram 51 is connected to the rear wall of ejecting block 20. Block 20 may include spaced, laterally extending side plates 52 which are fixed thereto and which have grooves 500 into which the guide rails 50 fit. Position sensing switches 53 and 54 are adapted to be actuated in the retracted position of ram 51 and in the fully extended position. An additional position sensing switch 540 is adapted to be actuated only on the return stroke of ram 20. Switches 53. 54 and 54a are actuated by follower bars carried with the ram 20.

- In the generally horizontal discharge position 21a of compactor wall 21a, the upper portions of side walls 22 and 23, outer wall 35, and closure 36 define an elongated space of generally bale-like form which may have a square or rectangular cross-section. The compactor wall 21a is adapted to be moved between the two positions illustrated in FIG. 1 by means of a hydraulic ram 55 which is pivotally supported on a bracket 55a carried by framework between the standards 11. Ram 54 is interconnected with compactor wall 26 through a force multiplying linkage which includes a first arm or link 56 pivotally mounted upon framework between standards 11 as at 57, and a second link 58 which is pivotally connected to the free end of link 56 and a bracket on compactor wall 26 as at 59.

The piston rod of ram 54 is pivotally connected to link 56 intermediate its ends as by means of a connecting bracket 60. When the piston rod of ram 54 is extended, link 56 is swung clockwise about its pivot axis 57 and force is transmitted through link 58 to the compactor wall to swing it toward the generally horizontal discharge position illustrated at 26'. The force multiplying linkage provided by links 56 and 58 provide a knee-like action in swinging the compactor wall toward the discharge position. The force multiplying effect of the linkage becomes greatest near the discharge position because the effective length of the lever arm is greatest near this position. This is the position where the greatest compacting force is needed.

Position sensing switches 61 and '62 are adapted to be actuated when the compactor door 26 is in the discharge and retracted positions, respectively. Switch 61 may be actuated by the link 56, whereas switch 62 may be actuated by contact with the wall 21a.

The connecting conduit 18 includes spray nozzles 63 (FIGS. 2 and 5) mounted in the wall portions thereof so as to spray a fire dampening liquid or gas (such as water, carbon dioxide or nitrogen) into the conduit and against the face of the ejecting block 20.

A hydraulic pump and reservoir supply for the various hydraulic rams is designated generally at 64.

A sonic cell, photoelectric cell, or similar sensing device 65 is positioned at an upper level in the chamber (preferably just below the top wall 35) and actuates a circuit (not shown in detail) whenever the level of shredded material within the chamber builds up to the level of the cell to start sequential operation of the inlet closure, the compactor wall, the first door, and ejecting ram as will be more fully described.

An electrical and fluid control circuit for the system is diagrammatically represented in FIG. 6. Each of the hydraulic rams 3'7, 47, 51 and 55 is double acting under control of associated valves 37v, 47v, 51v and 55v, respectively, which control the forward and reverse strokes of their associated rams. Each of the valves is adapted to control flow of hydraulic fluid from the hydraulic unit 64 to a selected end of its associated ram to selectively cause extension and retraction of the ram. The valves are electromagnetically actuated and connected to circuits energized by the position sensing switches heretofore described. Valves 37v, 47v and 55v are spring return valves. When their operating circuits are energized, they move to a position which causes extension of their associated rams. When their circuits are deenergized, the springs return the valves to a position which causes their associated rams to retract. In FIG. 6 the normal lines indicate, diagrammatically, electrical circuit lines while the double lines indicate, diagrammatically, hydraulic circuit lines. The lines with the arrows indicate movement of the piston of a ram. Extension of a ram is indicated by an arrow pointing away from the block representing the 'ram while retraction of a ram is indicated by an arrow pointing toward the block representing the ram.

The sequence of the cycle is indicated by the arrows to the side of the'blocks in the diagram. The closed circuit condition for the operating electrical circuits for the valves 37v, 55v and 47v is indicated by inclusion of a symbol for a normally closed switch in the line to the valve. The open circuit condition for the valves is indicated by inclusion of a symbol for a normally open switch in the line to the valve. Similar switch symbols 'are used to designate electrical circuit conditions for the conveyor motor and hydraulic pump.

The valve 37v is actuated to a position causing extending movement of ram 37 upon actuation of a circuit from sonic eye 65. Valve 37v is actuated to another position causing retracting movement of ram 37 through actuation of a circuit caused by actuation of switch 53.

Valve 55v is moved to a position causing extension of ram 55 when switch 42 actuates a circuit therefor. Valve 55v is actuated to another position causing retraction of ram 55 when switch 53 also closes the circuit for valve 37v.

Valve 47v is actuated to cause ram 47 to extend when switch 61 actuates the valve circuit, when valve 47v is moved to another position causing retraction of ram 47v when switch 54 is actuated to actuate the circuit to the valve.

Valve 51v is electromagnetically actuated in two directions and has a neutral position. A circuit energized by switch 49 actuates the valve to cause ram 51 to extend. A circuit energized by switch 48 actuates the valve to cause ram 51 to retract. A circuit energized by switch 54a shifts the valve to a neutral position which holds ram 51 stationary.

Valve 51v is shown with three electrical lines to diagrammatically represent three different circuit functions for moving the valve to ram extension, ram retraction and ram neutral positions.

The compactor wall and ram 55 are also controlled by a time controlled reversing mechanism 66 which may sense an overload condition. The mechanism 66 includes a circuit which will open the energizing circuit for valve 55v if switch 61 is not actuated within a predetermined and set time interval. This moves valve 55v to the ram retracting position to cause retraction of the wall and ram 55. After retraction, the circuit then energizes valve 55v again to cause compacting movement of the ram 55. The circuit 66 may be arranged to repeat this cycle several times until the compacted position switch 61 is actuated. If the switch 61 is not actuated after several reversing movements, the circuit may i sound a warning and automatically stop the machine untilthe trouble is corrected. The reversing circuit 66 is not effective aslong as ram 55 extends sufficiently to actuate switch 61 within the set time interval. Time delay and automatic reversing circuits are known to the electrical arts and for this reason are not described in detail herein.

Intermediate position switch 54a which is associated with ram 51 sets up a time delay circuit 67 to move valve 51 to the neutral position and to cause ram 51 to dwell in the intermediate position for a predetermined time interval which may be on the order of 15 seconds before the circuit causes energization of the valve 5 la to move ram 51 to the fully retracted position. Afterthe time interval, the time control 6 7 closes an energizing circuit for valve 51v to cause full retraction of ram 51. The time control circuit 67 also actuates electromagnetically operated valves leading to the sprinkling nozzles 63 so that spray is admitted from the nozzles in the dwell position of the ram.

Electromagneticallyactuated valves for causing extension and return of hydraulic rams as described above are well known to the art and, hence, they are not illustrated in detail herein.

Each of the hydraulic rams is positioned so that a full extension of the piston of the ram is utilized whenever hydraulic fluid causes extending movement of the ram.

In operation the conveyor 15 feeds material to shredder 10 and the shredded material flows downwardly to the opening 10a into the space defined by the compaction chamber within the housing When the level of material in the compaction chamber builds up to the sensing eye 65, sensing eye 65 closes a switch which stops the conveyor drive motor for conveyor 15 and energizes a circuit to cause valve 37v to' cause hydraulic ram 37 to advance the closure 36 over the inlet opening. When the closure 36 has closed the inlet opening, it actuates switch 42 which in turn actuates valve 55v to admit fluid to hydraulic ram 55, causing hydraulic ram 55 to swing the compaction wall 21a about its axis until it is substantially parallel to but spaced from the axis of the ejector ram 51. If the load of material in the compaction chamber is such that some overload condition prevents movement of the compaction wall to the discharge position, the reversing and time control mechanism 66 senses this and retracts ram 57 and then advances it again in a compacting direction. A time interval is provided between the reverse stroke and the forward stroke of ram 55 to allow the material to settle somewhat. This reversing operation is repeated until the compactor wall 21a has moved into parallelism with the axis of ram 51. If the overload is sufficiently great, the repeated forward and reverse movement of ram'55 will not bring the compaction wall to the dc sired level, whereupon the timing mechanism simply stops the ram until the overload condition can be manually corrected.

When the compactor wall moves into a position parallel withthe axis of ram 51 it then defines (with the top wall 35, closure 36 and the side walls 22 and 23) a compacted material chamber of substantially rectangular cross-section. When the Compactor wallreaches this uppermost position, sensing switch 62 is actuated which in turn actuates valve 47v to deliver fluid to extend ram 47 which in turn raises the fire door 17. When the fire door reaches its uppermost position as determined by the extended position of ram 47, sensing switch 49 is actuated, which in turn actuates valve 51v for the hydraulic ram 51 to cause the piston to this hydraulic ram to advance the pusher block 20 against the compacted material and move it through the now open inlet of the incinerator and into the incinerator. l-lydraulic ram 51 advances the pusher block or ram 20'to a point just short of vertical alignment with the outer face of the door 17. At this position sensing switch 54 is actuated, which in turn deenergizes valve 47v for the hydraulic ram 47 to allow the fire door 17 to descend. Fire door 17 then descends and wipes or brushes across the face of the pusher ram 20 to thereby free it of material.

' When fire door 17 has closed the incinerator opening, it actuates switch 48 which in turn actuates the valve 51v mechanism for hydraulic ram 51 to retract the pusher ram 20 to an intermediate position which is shown in dotted line in FIG. 5. At this intermediate position, sensing switch 54a is actuated, which moves valve 51v to the neutral or holding position. Switch 48 also causes nozzles 63 to spray the face of the pusher ram 20, thereby effecting a cooling action on the pusher ram 20 and extinguishing any fire in duct 18, when retraction of ram 20 starts. The dwell time at this point is under control of timing mechanism 67.

The dwell period is used to assure that any accidental fire in the space between ram 20 and door 17 is extinguished before the ram 20 moves back to expose the compaction cavity. Also, since the space within conduit 18 between ram 20 and door 17 is an enclosed space, any flames present will quickly exhaust the oxygen supply, thus helping to extinguish the flame.

After a predetermined dwell in the intermediate position, the valve 51v for ram 51 is actuated by the time controlled mechanism 67 to cause ram 51 to fully retract, whereupon switch 53 is actuated. Actuation of switch 53 deenergizes the valve 37v for the closure ram 37 to cause this ram to move the closure to the open position and deenergizesvalve 55v to retract the compactor wall 21a. Actuation of both retracted position switches 62 and 41 for the compactor wall 21a and the closure 36 closes circuits for the drive motor for the conveyor to start its operation. Actuation of both of these switches also stops the hydraulic system pump.

The invention includes a number of advantageous characteristics. First of all, by using the compactor wall which swings about a horizontal axis, the compaction assembly may have a relatively low vertical height and a relatively narrow width. By positioning the compactor wall 21a past a vertical center line through its axis as shown in FIG. 2 for the material receiving position,

a relatively large material receiving space is created. The relative volume of the material receiving space, as compared to the volume of the material delivery space when the compactor wall is substantially horizontal, is on the order of three to one.

By virtue of the arrangement, the compacted material is formed relatively neatly without trailing pieces which oftentimes extend from baled material, particularly in horizontal ram types of balers. The cooperative action of the tire door and ejector ram in the material discharging position is such as to strip the face of the pusher head of material. This is immediately followed by the retraction of the ejector ram so that the ejector block is exposed to the heat of the incinerator for a relatively short time interval. The cooling sprays which operate on the pusher head immediately after it is retracted insure that the pusher head is relatively cool when it is within the compaction chamber. if, for any reason, any materials stick to the face of thepusher head and are ignited during the instant that the pusher head is exposed to the heat of the incinerator, these materials have a very small volume due to the wiping action of the fire door, and any fire that may be present is immediately extinguished by thesprays.

It should be noted that the control valve for the fire door 17 is such that if electrical power fails valve 47v will move to a ram retracting position and the weight of the door will cause it to descend. i

The shredder aids the overall organization by reducing materialto a size such that substantially the same weight of material is present before the compaction starts. The weight of material to be consumed by the combustion process is thus controlled. This also insures that any air that is present in the compacted material is substantially the same for each load. This air, in addition to any free air in duct 18 which is exposed to the incinerator when the material is fed thereto, is of a minor volume and can be readily taken into account in controlling the combustion process in the incinerator. The shredder conveyor belt motor may be additionally controlled by a variable timing mechanism which will start the conveyor only after a predetermined time interval after the ejecting stroke of ram 20. This regulates the number of charges of material to the incinerator in a given period of time to thus assure efficient operation of the incinerator.

I claim:

1. A structure for compacting and incinerating material including a housing defining a compaction chamber and an incinerator positioned alongside of said housing, said housing having means defining a material delivery passage having an outlet aligned with and connected to an inlet opening to said incinerator, said compaction chamber being open to said passage and having a compactor wall operable beneathsaid passage'for forcing material upwardly into said passage and compacting said material, said incinerator having a vertically movable door for closing said inlet opening and outlet, said door being movable between an open position above said inlet opening and a closed position aligned with said inlet opening, said housing having an ejecting ram aligned with said passage and said inlet opening and movable between a material ejecting position alongside said inlet opening and a retracted position spaced therefrom, said housing including inlet means for receiving material to be compacted in said housing, means for raising said door, and means for lowering said door when said ram is in said material ejecting position whereby said door may wipe across the face of said ram to remove material therefrom during closure of said door.

2. The structure of claim 1 characterized by and including liquid sprinkler means in said passage and operable upon retracting movement of said ram to spray a cooling liquid against the face of said ram and in said passage.

3. The structure of claim 1 characterized by and including liquid sprinkler means in said passage and oper able upon retracting movement of said ram to spray a cooling liquid against the face of said ram and in said passage, and shredding means positioned above said housing for receiving a shredding material therein, said shredding means having a discharge for shredded material vertically aligned with said inlet.

4. The structure of claim 1 characterized by and including a slidable closure for closing said inlet and automatic means for initiating movement of said compactor wall from said retracted position to said discharge position when said inlet is closed by said closure, said structure also including automatic means for opening said door and for operating said ejecting ram when said compactor wall is in said discharge position.

5. The structure of claim 4 wherein said ejecting ram has an intermediate position between said material ejecting position and said retracted position, and said automatic means for said ejecting means includes means for retracting said ram to said intermediate position and dwelling there for a predetermined interval of time before fully retracting said ram'.

6. The structure of claim 5 characterized by and including sprinkler means for spraying a cooling liquid in said passage and against said ram when said ram is in said intermediate position. 

1. A structure for compacting and incinerating material including a housing defining a compaction chamber and an incinerator positioned alongside of said housing, said housing having means defining a material delivery passage having an outlet aligned with and connected to an inlet opening to said incinerator, said compaction chamber being open to said passage and having a compactor wall operable beneath said passage for forcing material upwardly into said passage and compacting said material, said incinerator having a vertically movable door for closing said inlet opening and outlet, said door being movable between an open position above said inlet opening and a closed position aligned with said inlet opening, said housing having an ejecting ram aligned with said passage and said inlet opening and movable between a material ejecting position alongside said inlet opening and a retracted position spaced therefrom, said housing including inlet means for receiving material to be compacted in said housing, means for raising said door, and means for lowering said door when said ram is in said material ejecting position whereby said door may wipe across the face of said ram to remove material therefrom during closure of said door.
 2. The structure of claim 1 characterized by and including liquid sprinkler means in said passage and operable upon retracting movement of said ram to spray a cooling liquid against the face of said ram and in said passage.
 3. The structure of claim 1 characterized by and including liquid sprinkler means in said passage and operable upon retracting movement of said ram to spray a cooling liquid against the face of said ram and in said passage, and shredding means positioned above said housing for receiving a shredding material therein, said shredding means having a discharge for shredded material vertically aligned with said inlet.
 4. The structure of claim 1 characterized by and including a slidable closure for closing said inlet and automatic means for initiating movement of said compactor wall from said retracted position to said discharge position when said inlet is closed by said closure, said structure also including automatic means for opening said door and for operating said ejecting ram when said compactor wall is in said discharge position.
 5. The structure of claim 4 wherein said ejecting ram has an intermediate position between said material ejecting position and said retracted position, and said automatic means for said ejecting means includes means for retracting said ram to said intermediate position and dwelling there for a predetermined interval of time before fully retracting said ram.
 6. The structure of claim 5 characterized by and including sprinkler means for spraying a cooling liquid in said passage and against said ram when said ram is in said intermediate position. 